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Bath Salts, Ignorance of the Law, and the “Knowingly a Bad Guy” Theory

We’ve all heard the expression that “ignorance of the law is no excuse.” It means that a person cannot escape punishment for violating criminal laws regardless of whether he or she knew of their existence. Being well versed in the laws doesn’t provide an avenue for relief for criminals either. The case of Stephen McFadden,...

Florida Judges Must Wear Black Robes

As recently recounted by the Miami Herald, all Florida judges are now obligated to wear black robes without “embellishments.” This order is directly from the top judge himself: Chief Justice Jorge Labarga of the Florida Supreme Court. To some members of the general public, they may be wondering what changed. But to those of us...

FL’s Criminal Justice System: The Courts (Part 1)

In my practice, I find that an extraordinarily high number of clients are simply unaware of how our state’s court system is structured, let alone works. If you count yourself among the unfamiliar, worry not. In a series of blog posts that I’ll caption “FL’s Criminal Justice System,” I will endeavor to break down this...

Money Can’t Buy (Lawyers) Happiness

Everyone has heard the expression “money can’t buy you happiness” before. Evidently, when it comes to being a lawyer, there’s more than a shred of truth to that saying. In a recent article published by the New York Times, “Lawyers With Lowest Pay Report More Happiness,” it was shown that lawyers and law students alike...

Speedy Trial or Fair Trial – Not a “Hobson’s Choice”

As a criminal defense lawyer, I am often faced with a series of inquiries from friends and family like, “How can you represent those people?” (Roy Black has a very interesting blog post (and twist) on this precise question). A less-prevalent, but nonetheless common question is: “Have you ever gotten someone off on a technicality? (And if...